1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to anti-virus technology, and in particular to anti-virus software implementation in a computer network.
2. Description of the Related Art
The widespread popularity of the Internet has resulted in some complications, particularly in the enterprise environment. Enterprise users, for example, typically connect to an external network or a computer by various methods through an Intranet.
Intranet users and their status cannot be strictly controlled. This loosely controlled environment provides an opportunity for computer viruses to infect the Intranet. Computer virus infection reduces productivity and causes great damage. Thus, anti-virus software installation is a standard procedure on the construction of an Intranet. That is, all computers connected to an Intranet must have anti-virus software installed to prevent computer virus infection.
An anti-virus software policy can be implemented by requiring all Intranet users to install anti-virus software. This method, however, is inefficient as many users will not install the anti-virus software in their personal computers, as some may believe the anti-virus software will be detrimental to computer performance or may have driver incompatibility.
Another method of anti-virus software implementation is to require all users to install anti-virus software when logging on to a network domain. This method may be enforceable but efficiency suffers if a verification method is not provided to detect continued use of the anti-virus software.
An enterprise can also utilize a probe application that periodically determines if all the computers already connected to the Intranet have anti-virus software installed. If any connected computer does not have anti-virus software installed, the probe application executes an installation program to install anti-virus software on the detected computers. This method provides a greater degree of enforceability but is unsuitable as large enterprises typically have numerous Intranet users. Use of the probe application is time-consuming and consumes network resources. Moreover, the execution and maintenance of the probe program may present additional problems.
Conventionally, anti-virus software implementation is regarded as an internal enterprise task. As mentioned above, more enterprises regard anti-virus software installation as a standard procedure, thus anti-virus software implementation is a developing trend. Existing techniques, however, cannot adequately accomplish anti-virus software implementation.